Kulhimas ( Spicy Tuna Curry)

My mother taught me this recipe recently. The kulhimas recipe she taught me before was a bit different from this one and I love this one more than the first one.   Interestingly enough she told me this recipe was taught to her by her stepmother.
My step-grandmother passed away a few years back.... and it wasn't until very recently my mum suddenly remembered this recipe and showed me how to make it.

The original kulhimas does not contain tomato paste. I think tomato paste has become the range here in our society and it is being added to literally everything. I won't be surprised to see it added into garudhiya one of these days.  And that really makes me mad, the way traditional recipes are being changed. 

Recipe: Kulhimas ( as taught to me by my mum  )
Serves about 3-4 persons

250-300g of fresh tuna fillet, cut into bite-size cubes.(That is roughly 1 fillet of a medium-sized  skipjack tuna)
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp ginger paste ( or use 1/2 inch piece of ginger)
1 small onion
10 curry leaves
1 tsp ground cumin
2  or  2  1/2  tsp hot chilli powder (that pure ground chilli powder no other  spice  added. all my recipes  require this kind  of chilli powder)
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 a small unripe green mango or 3-4 billinbi or  juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 cup freshly grated coconut
salt
about 3 tbsp oil

Use a motor and pestle or a good grinder to grind the spice paste or if no other choice chuck them in a blender ( but remember to wash well you don't want the  drinks you make in them to start tasting  garlicky)

Place your garlic, ginger,   onion, all the spices,  coconut, curry leaves, mango or billinbi and a pinch of salt and a few tablespoons of water in your choice of grinder or food processor or blender or even motor and pestle and grind to a  fine paste.

Season the tuna very lightly with a tiny bit of salt. Then mix in the paste you prepared into the tuna. ( If you are using lime juice add it now).

Heat oil in a suitable pot, ( no not a flower pot :P)  over medium heat. Once it heats up, add the tuna cubes, clean up the bowl well, add a tiny bit of water in the bowl that you mixed the tuna with the spices and clean it into the pan.

Now stir gently and cover.  Cook over low heat, for about 15- 20 minutes, stirring every now and then. Since it is supposed to be a fairly dry curry, remove the lid once the tuna is cooked and let it cook another 5 minutes till almost all the water evaporates. Taste and adjust salt.( well during Ramadhan its impossible so try and estimate how much you would normally add. For this size portion maybe about 1 level tsp of table salt would do I think).

Serve with Roshi ( or any form of bread)

Note : If you can't get hold of fresh coconut use Maggie or any other brand's coconut milk powder, about 3-4 tablespoons and add it when making the chilli paste mixture.

If tuna is  unavailable try with any firm fish  such as sword fish